The Morgan Stanley settlement follows a similar agreement with Barclays Capital in October that resulted in a recovery of $325 million.

The House Financial Services Committee approved a bill Tuesday that would direct the Federal Housing Administration to relax restrictions on its condominium loan program.

Calvin Hagins, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's deputy assistant director for originations, warned mortgage lenders this week about four contentious areas that its examiners will zero in on next year.

Indications of fraud ebbed when refinancing was more prevalent, but now that home purchases are picking up, misrepresentations could increase, too.

A former Jefferies & Co. managing director accused of lying to customers about bond prices had his fraud conviction overturned in the latest blow to the government’s effort to hold individuals accountable for alleged wrongdoing on Wall Street.

Two independent mortgage banks agreed to settlements in the past week with the Justice Department for failing to meet Federal Housing Administration guidelines. The cases are a warning to nonbank lenders that they need to beef up self-reporting of deficiencies, and they remind large banks about the legal risks associated with FHA lending.

There are no easy fixes to Nationstar's myriad problems — including a plunging stock price and increased regulatory scrutiny — but Chief Executive Jay Bray says the turnaround starts with a commitment to improving customer service.

Poppi Metaxas, the former chief executive of Gateway Bank in Oakland, Calif., was sentenced to 18 months in prison for perpetrating a scheme involving mortgages.

Over 20 mortgage and real estate-related trade groups are urging Congress to provide a hold harmless period till Feb. 1 for any errors regarding implementation of the integrated RESPA-TILA mortgage disclosures.

Legislative proposals to reform the housing finance system have failed to garner enough support, but a surprisingly simply reform idea is in plain sight: deeper private mortgage insurance coverage.

Issues with upgrading software and ensuring pricing accuracy to comply with the consumer bureau's "integrated disclosures" have been magnified in wholesale loan transactions.

Add retail customers to the list of groups raising concerns about possible high-pressure product-sales tactics at Wells Fargo; many of them are considering jumping ship in response, according to a new survey of customer attitudes at big banks. However, Wells' rivals shouldn't celebrate — they are at risk of losing customers, too, for a variety of reasons.

The availability of home loans for low credit score borrowers remains very tight by historical standards but there might be some loosening in 2016 if the Federal Reserve begins raising interest rates.

The sweeping, five-year highway bill may include some key concessions for small financial institutions, but the deal has left many in financial services frustrated. Here's why.

With the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's disclosure rule potentially slowing down the loan process, institutions need to focus on communication strategies to keep young borrowers at the closing table.

Sage Bank in Lowell, Mass., has agreed to pay about $1.2 million to settle Justice Department allegations of discrimination against minorities in mortgage lending.

With an interest rate increase by the Federal Reserve Bank increasingly looking imminent, what else has to happen to set the stage for a return to adjustment-rate mortgages?

Broadway Financial Corp. in Los Angeles has been released from an enforcement action requiring it to improve its corporate governance.

Though regulation-mandated technology upgrades give vendors little time to rest, the growing acceptance of data standardization should appeal to both lenders and regulators.

A plan by the government-sponsored enterprises to begin collecting the new Closing Disclosure data is designed to promote Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's loan quality goals. But the initiative may also prompt broader use of e-signatures and paperless processing.